Motives for exercising among young adults with a moderately positive body image

• Autores: María J. Ramírez Molina, Débora Godoy Izquierdo, María Luisa Vázquez Pérez, Raquel Lara Moreno, Estefanía Navarrón, Mercedes Vélez Toral, Ana B. Padial, Mª Belén Sánchez, Ana Beltrán, Manuel G. Jiménez Torres
• Localización: Anuario de psicología clínica y de la salud = Annuary of Clinical and Health Psychology, ISSN-e 1699-6410, Vol. 9, 2013, págs. 93-96
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Background: People engage in exercise and sports due to several reasons, depending on factors such as age, sex and health or fitness status. These motives include enhancing health and fitness status, improving appearance and body image or enjoying in leisure time. Aims & Methods: Grounded in Self-Determination Theory (SDT), this study explored motives for exercising in healthy men and women 18 to 40 years old who were regular exercisers and held a moderately positive body image. They voluntarily completed an online survey on their exercise practice, body image and motives for exercising. Results: Contrary to previous SDT-based empirical findings, appearance improvement emerged as an important motive for exercising, and it was more frequently mentioned than health&fun-related motives by the whole sample and by subsamples of men and women and younger young and older young adults. Conclusions: Given that appearance management-related motives may have both positive and undesired outcomes on exercise behaviour and personal well-being, they should be carefully reviewed with women and men in their young adulthood who are exercise intenders, beginners or regular exercisers.